Biden announces Indian American as his nominee for finance body

- ADVERTISEMENT -

President Joe Biden announced his intent to nominate several individuals as key leaders in his administration March 20, 2023, including Nisha Desai Biswal for Deputy Chief Executive Officer of the United States International Development Finance Corporation.

Desai Biswal brings more than 30 years of experience in U.S. foreign policy and international development programs within the Executive Branch, Congress, and the private sector, noted the White house in its press release.

Currently, Biswal is the Senior Vice President for International Strategy and Global Initiatives at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, overseeing the U.S. India Business Council and U.S. Bangladesh Business Council.

Previously, she served as Assistant Secretary for South and Central Asian Affairs at the  State Department from 2013 to 2017, where she oversaw the U.S.-India strategic partnership” during a period of unprecedented cooperation, including the launch of an annual U.S.-India Strategic and Commercial Dialogue,” noted the White House.

Biswal also initiated the C5+1 Dialogue with Central Asia and the U.S.-Bangladesh Partnership Dialogue during her tenure as Assistant Secretary.

Prior to that, she was Assistant Administrator for Asia at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), directing and supervising USAID programs and operations across South, Central, and Southeast Asia.

She has also spent more than a decade on Capitol Hill, working as Staff Director on the State and Foreign Operations Subcommittee on Appropriations as well as professional staff on the Foreign Affairs Committee in the House of Representatives.

Biswal serves as the Chair of the Advisory Committee on Voluntary Foreign Aid and is on both the Board of the National Democratic Institute and the U.S. Institute of Peace International Advisory Council. She is a member of the United States Institute of Peace Afghanistan Study Group and the Aspen Institute’s India-U.S. Track 2 Dialogue on Climate and Energy. Biswal is a graduate of the University of Virginia, where she studied International Relations and Economics